World Book Day reveals the £1 books for 2026

World Book Day will be held on 5 March 2026. Registration is now open for 2026 and  schools and early years settings can now register for their 2026 £1/€1.50 book tokens. Registration closes on 10 October.

The line-up of £1/€1.50 books for 2026 that children can choose for free with their £1/€1.50 book token has been announced, including books for beginning, early, fluent and independent readers. Alongside the 12 titles available across the UK, there are three books for Ireland and a World Book Day Welsh title.

The books will be available from booksellers from 12 February 2026. The £1/€1.50 books will also available in braille, large print & audio via Guide Dogs, Vision Ireland, RNIB and Calibre Audio. The token redemption period is from 12 February - 15 March 2026.

Choosing a book with book tokensChoose a Book:

The £1/€1.50 book tokens are given to children through schools and charities, some children's magazines and with McDonald's Happy Meals.  On World Book Day (the first Thursday in March), children can take their token to a participating bookshop and swap their token for one of the specially published £1 books.

World Book Day aims to help children in developing a love of reading; this World Book Day, half a million children in England don't own a single book. World Book Day's Impact Report for 2024 shows the effect World Book Day can have on the lives of children across the UK.  

The World Book Day 2026 £1 books features a variety of books for different reading levels:

Beginning

One Big Family  (Ladybird)
Meet Peppa Pig! She lives with Mummy Pig, Daddy Pig, her little brother, George, and her baby sister, Evie. Today, they are going to a Family Fun Day at the park. There’s going to be a giant picnic and team games! When Peppa’s best friend, Suzy Sheep, is sad that her team is smaller than everyone else’s, what will Peppa do to help? Join Peppa and her friends for a fun-filled family day.

The Big Bang: Uh oh! Where did Casper go?  (Dorling Kindersley)
By Rose Ayling-Ellis with Katie Blackburn, illus Paddy Donnelly
When a noisy storm scares Halo and Rocky, they don’t realise their friend Casper can’t hear the thunder. But when lightning flashes, Casper dashes off! Can Halo and Rocky be brave, find Casper, and learn a new way to talk to their friend?

Rita agus an tEachtrán (An tSnáthaid Mhór) (Ireland only)
By Máire Zepf, illus Illustrated by Andrew Whitson
Is cailín beag í Rita le smaointe móra. Ba bhreá léi eitilt i spáslong go dtí pláinéad eile agus eachtrán a bheith aici mar chara. Tuigeann Rita nach mbíonn sé éasca teanga agus nósanna nua a fhoghlaim. Agus tiontóidh an t-eachtrán saol Rita (agus an leabhar seo!) bunoscionn.
Rita is a little girl with big ideas. She would love to fly in a spaceship to another planet and have an alien as a friend. Rita understands that it is not easy to learn a new language and customs. And the adventure will turn Rita’s life (and this book!) upside down.

Un i Ti ac Un i Fi (Gwasg Rily Publications) (Wales only)
By Aneirin Karadog, illus Matt Abbott
Mae rhannu yn gwneud i bawb wenu! O pizza a jôcs i straeon ac ymbarél — ond nid dy annwyd! — mae’r llyfr lluniau chwareus hwn yn dathlu’r llawenydd o roi, gofalu a bod yn garedig. Un i ti ac un i fi.
Sharing makes everything brighter! From pizza and jokes to stories and umbrellas — but not sneezes! — this playful picture book celebrates the joy of sharing fairly, caring and being kind. One for you and one for me.

Early

Unicorn Academy: My Secret Unicorn Diary (Nosy Crow)
Peek inside Sophia and Wildstar’s magical world and find out what Sophia really thinks of their first year together at Unicorn Academy in this exclusive mini diary! Filled with sparkling unicorns, epic adventures and mysterious secrets . . . Are you ready for something magical?
Includes a FREE Nosy Crow Stories Aloud® audiobook! Scan the code, hear the story.

Funny FACTopia! (What on Earth!)
By Christopher Lloyd & Kate Olesin, illus Andy Smith
Welcome! You have landed in Funny FACTopia!, a world of hilarious, weird and amazing facts. Every fact is connected in surprising and comical ways. Follow a trail that hops from facts about astronauts to facts about zebras, and from facts about candy floss to facts about kings and queens. And there isn’t just one trail through these facts. Sometimes your path branches, and you can choose to jump to a completely different (but still connected) part of Funny FACTopia! Where will your curiosity take you?

Pablo and Splash: The Castle Quest (Bloomsbury)
Time-travelling penguins Pablo and Splash are on a quest! Splash has heard there was an unlimited supply of delicious fishy snacks in medieval England. She heads straight to the time-machine, pulling best pal Pablo along by the flipper. They soon meet some sheep, a pig and a very angry farmer - but no sign of tasty treats at all. Will they have better luck inside the castle? Or is it time to say 'good knight'?

Pia's Pet Club: Iguana Escape (Usborne Publishing)
Written by Serena Patel, illus Emma McCann
I’m Pia, and I LOVE pets so much that I’ve set up a club with my friends! Today we’re all SO excited about seeing the Amazing Animal Roadshow, and especially its star, Iggy the Iguana. But somehow Iggy has disappeared! This is Pet Club’s BIG moment. It’s time to work together, think fast and use all our pet knowledge to find him – otherwise the show will be ruined! But Iggy is nowhere to be seen. Can an iguana really just vanish…?

Fluent

Bear Rescue (HarperCollins Children’s Books)
By Hannah Gold, illus Levi Pinfold
August Wood lives in the far north of the Arctic. His best friend is a husky called Blaze, and he’s the younger brother of April Wood – the girl who once famously rescued a polar bear. But one summer’s day, when a sudden snowstorm strikes, August goes missing. With temperatures plummeting, it’s up to April, Bear and Blaze to track him down and bring him safely home . . . before it’s too late.

Bunny vs Monkey: Total Chaos (The Phoenix Comic Books - an imprint of David Fickling Books)
By Jamie Smart
Discover Jamie Smart’s million-selling and award-winning comic book sensation!
Packed full of comic strip hilarity, this book is your window into the fabulous world of Bunny vs Monkey - where the mayhem has begun! Monkey's mischievous schemes to take over The Woods are afoot, and only Bunny can stop him! To do just that, he'll need to find his thermal underwear, fire up the Flan Cannon, and watch out for hairy jam (ew!)… In Bunny vs Monkey only one thing is guaranteed… Lots and lots of laughter!

Skandar and the Secret Element (Simon & Schuster)
by A.F. Steadman
Albert never thought he would become a unicorn rider. But then he is whisked away to a mysterious Island to bond with a warrior unicorn, and to train in elemental magic. There, Albert meets a boy called Skandar, who is hiding a dangerous secret. When an encounter with a terrifying wild unicorn throws Albert and Skandar together, will the adventure help them become the heroes they are destined to be? Get ready for unlikely heroes, elemental battles, dangerous secrets and bloodthirsty unicorns.
This gripping story is perfect for newcomers to the Skandar series as well as superfans, and comes with bonus content and activities.

Chaos at the Chocolate Factory (Puffin)
by Sibéal Pounder, illus Emily Jones
An exclusive new World Book Day story, inspired by Roald Dahl's Charlie and The Chocolate Factory. Charlie Bucket is having a magical time learning to run Mr Willy Wonka's famous chocolate factory. There are so many delicious new creations to be invented! And as long as there is a wonkachocolate factory, there will be a Willy Wonka pinging about like an excited squirrel inside it - along with his brilliant Oompa-Loompas, who know just how to keep everything running smoothly. But everyone needs a holiday, even Oompa-Loompas. And that's where this story begins . . . When Mr Wonka and the Oompa-Loompas decide it's time to go on an adventure to look for marvellous new recipe ingredients, Charlie is left to run the factory by himself for the first time. And it's fair to say things don't quite go to plan . . . Can Charlie use his imagination to save the chocolate factory from disaster - or will all the chaos mean closing the factory gates forever?

Unbelievable Football: The Most Amazing World Cup Stories You Never Knew (Hachette Children’s Group)
by Matt Oldfield, illus Ollie Mann
Think you know everything about football? Get ready for kick-off and discover incredible stories, facts and stats about some of the most unbelievable World Cup football moments of all time. From the incredible teams to the most amazing goalscorers, unbeatable matches, last-minute saves, penalty dramas and even the amazing animals that have been involved, too. Packed full of true footballing stories and amazing action that will keep football-mad readers going from the first minute to the final whistle.
*This book has not been authorised, licensed or endorsed by Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) or any associated company.

Milly McCarthy and the St Patrick's Day Pandemonium (Gill Books) (Ireland only)
by Leona Forde, illus Karen Harte
Milly's class has been chosen to represent their school at the local St Patrick's Day parade! They decide on a float theme of Irish myths and legends, but while Milly thinks she'd be perfect as Queen Maeve, instead she's given the role of the back end of the Brown Bull of Cooley. What could possibly go wrong?! Quite a lot, as it turns out … but sure, it's totally NOT her fault that Ellie causes a stink, or that Ronan's sliotar goes flying, or that the parade ends in the biggest pile-up Ballybrogan has ever seen …! ‘The sort of book where I can see kids howling with laughter' - Dublin City FM, Katy Conneely ‘A must for Wimpy Kid fans' - Irish Examiner

The Doomsday Club: Shape-Shifters (The O'Brien Press) (Ireland only)
by Kevin Moran
Conan, Jack, Jerry and Yash barely escaped with their lives the last time they messed around with portals, demons and the powerful relic known as the summonstone. But when the chance to reunite with an old friend arises, they decide to use its ancient power one more time. Big mistake. What they summon is not an old friend, or even a new one. It's something monstrous, something devious … and now it's loose. Racing against time, the Doomsday Club reluctantly band together again to recapture it before it destroys their city. But the creature has a few tricks up its sleeve, and it won't be long before there's more than one shapeshifting monster stalking the streets of Dublin. Unleashing it was easy. Surviving it won't be …

Against All Odds (Hot Key Books)
by Nathanael Lessore
Noranto knows who he is. Or at least, he thinks he does. Footballer. Hustler. One of the boys. He's got the playground game on lock and big plans for his mum's surprise birthday party this weekend. But poetry? That's just something he does quietly - in his head, on the bus, between goals. Until his teacher spots his talent and encourages him to enter a creative writing competition. Noranto laughs it off. No chance: the deadline's in three days and he's already got way too much going on. His mates agree and tell him to stick to what he knows. Poetry doesn't win matches. But the rhymes won't stop coming. And a little voice inside him keeps asking: What if this is his shot? What if he could do it all? As the weekend unfolds and obstacles are thrown in his way, Noranto finds himself stuck between what's expected of him and who he really wants to be. Can he find the words in time - and the courage to share them - against all the odds? A funny and authentic story about the joys and challenges of dreaming big and showing the world you don't have to fit into just one box.
Against All Odds is not suitable for younger readers.

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